Randall Robinson’s Fight for Justice for Mandela and South Africa

As the nation mourns the loss of Nelson Mandela, South African icon and leader of the anti-apartheid movement, we are reminded of African-American Harvard-educated lawyer, author and political activist Randall Robinson and his tireless fight for the release of Mandela.

He was arrested numerous times in that struggle.

Through his
platform, TransAfrica, Robinson called for not only Mandela’s release
from prison, but also fought to help get the wheels in motion to
end the reign of apartheid.?

He is also known for advocating on behalf of Haitian immigrants.

The author of two books, “The Debt: What America Owes to Blacks,” which
addresses the controversial issue of Reparations for African-American
people, and “Quitting America: The Departure of a Black Man from his Native Land,” Robinson left the United States recently in opposition of its foreign and domestic policies. Currently, he lives in St. Kitts.

In an article published by news outlet Democracy Now!, Robinson provides in-depth details of his work in support of Mandela. When asked to share his reaction to the news that Mandela had passed away, he replied, “I am deeply, deeply moved. He was an extraordinary human being. Seldom do you find combined in one personality this kind of brilliant thoughtfulness. He was a contemplative man. He was nuanced. He was not a doctrinaire. He was charming, and he was warm. At the same time, he was as strong as steel and highly principled, and a figure around which, of course, so many across the world could easily rally. He was, of course, everything to the anti-apartheid movement, and seldom do you find that. His life was a very rare, a very rare thing.”